Stepping into the world of circularity — Irish round houses, enclosures, ringforts, even crannógaí and boolies — one immediately gets a sense of the ‘togetherness’ that typifies Irish rural life in all its simplicity. Kathryn Daily’s Bailte Beaga, or Little Clusters, began with fortifications then developed into communities, bringing us back to an age of both innocence and security, to the bright colours of sunny spring mornings and hazy summer sunsets, and to the comforting textures that weave family life together. Her sense of colour reveals the nuances of the delighted eye at every turn. Her scale is intimate and miniature, as in the traditions of early Irish metalwork and illuminated manuscripts. Circular images of variegated colouring, texture and scale radiate from an inner world to expand our minds and imaginations.
